A group of towns on either side of the Cape Cod Canal has come to terms with SEMASS over how to dispose of solid waste over the next decade. What remains to be seen is whether those terms will turn into contracts for each of the communities.

The towns, Barnstable among them, received term sheets last week from the company, which incinerates much of the Cape’s trash just over the bridges in Rochester. Some have had placeholder articles on their town meeting warrants and will try to move ahead with contracts.

Barnstable’s town council, its legislature, will hold a solid waste workshop on May 23 to look at the terms from SEMASS and other options. Town Manager Tom Lynch said the term sheet is being reviewed by the legal department and the DPW.

Cape Cod Commission Deputy Director Patty Daley, who led negotiations with SEMASS on behalf of the towns, said in an interview this week that she’s hoping as many towns as possible sign on.

“Prior to release of the term sheet,” she said, “we had interest from towns with an aggregate tonnage of 101 to 104 per year.”

More is better, as the numbers translate directly into cost savings. At 104,000 tons a year total, the contracts would be at the upper limit of a bracket with a tip fee (disposal at SEMASS) of $67 a ton. If the group could stretch just a little to 105,000, the tip fee would be half a dollar less.

“In my mind,” Daley said, “the tip fees are competitive with some of the quotes we received when we did our due diligence” and interviewed other waste disposal companies.

Early estimates of tip fees were significantly higher.

Daley said the towns’ negotiating team, which included Harwich Town Administrator Jim Merriam and Orleans Selectman Sims McGrath as well as attorney John Giorgio, “negotiated some benefits into the term sheet, including some forgiveness up to 20 percent of not meeting annual guaranteed tonnage.” Also, towns will not be penalized for reduced tonnage related to increased recycling.

Towns unable to pass contracts at spring town meetings will have an option to do so before the end of November.